Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Bush was right about the surge in Iraq

'In this atmosphere, we’re all less conscious of our severe mental shortcomings and less inclined to be skeptical of our own opinions. Occasionally you surf around the Web and find someone who takes mental limitations seriously. For example, Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway once gave a speech called “The Psychology of Human Misjudgment.” He and others list our natural weaknesses: We have confirmation bias; we pick out evidence that supports our views. We are cognitive misers; we try to think as little as possible. We are herd thinkers and conform our perceptions to fit in with the group.

But, in general, the culture places less emphasis on the need to struggle against one’s own mental feebleness. Today’s culture is better in most ways, but in this way it is worse.

The ensuing mental flabbiness is most evident in politics. Many conservatives declare that Barack Obama is a Muslim because it feels so good to say so. Many liberals would never ask themselves why they were so wrong about the surge in Iraq while George Bush was so right. The question is too uncomfortable.'

4 comments
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Sunnis began the war by killing Shia. I thought the Shia ended the war when they learned how to use the electric drill on random Sunni heads. That happened to coincide with the surge. Some general said the war ended when the Sunni knew they had lost and the Shia knew they had won. The surge was a side show.

Jon, you are not counting the Crusader/Shia attack on Sunni Iraq in 2003?

We know what happened, don't rewrite history. The Shia thought they could triumph in 2003 by killing massive numbers of Iraqis, aided by the proto-teabaggers from the U.S. (they were still in a warmongering mood at the time). Then, they thought, the world would forget all about it.

As it turns out, some [however small] retaliation has taken place.

Jon Claerbout said:"I thought the Shia ended the war when they learned how to use the electric drill on random Sunni heads."

Oh how cute. Now for the first time I am convinced that you went to war on humanitarian grounds.

You have me now, this bit about using an electrical drill on another human, is the final shred of evidence that Shia are wonderful and innocent

Baghdad in 2000: "A woman known as Um Haydar was beheaded reportedly without charge or trial at the end of December 2000. She was 25 years' old and married with three children. Her husband was sought by the security authorities reportedly because of his involvement in Islamist armed activities against the state. He managed to flee the country. Men belonging to Feda'iyye Saddam came to the house in al-Karrada district and found his wife, children and his mother. Um Haydar was taken to the street and two men held her by the arms and a third pulled her head from behind and beheaded her in front of the residents. The beheading was also witnessed by members of the Ba'ath Party in the area. The security men took the body and the head in a plastic bag, and took away the children and the mother-in-law. The body of Um Haydar was later buried in al-Najaf. The fate of the children and the mother-in-law remains unknown."